The Foreign Policy Association (APE) condemns firmly the armed attack of the Russian Federation in Ukraine, which represents a flagrant violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our neighbor country.

APE members consider this attack a military aggression without precedent in the recent European history, which aims to destabilize the situation in Ukraine and the region, to encourage secessionist movements and illegal enclosure by the Russian Federation of a part of Ukraine’s territory, as well as to thwart the European path of our neighbor.

The Russian Federation’s actions break the provisions of the UN Chart, OSCE Helsinki Final Act, as well as the Russian Federation’s commitments to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine taken by signing the Budapest Memorandum in 1994 and the Bilateral Friendship, Cooperation and Partnership Agreement with Ukraine in 1997.

The Russian Federation’s aggression on Ukraine represents an attempt to revise the existent European Borders under the false pretext of defending the Russian minority rights in the post soviet space and is a serious threat to peace and security on the whole continent.

The latest events show that we are witnessing the “Transnistrization of Crimea”. The Russian Federation applies the same methods meant to split the society, to encourage and institutionalize separatism, used for the first time in the Transnistrian region of Moldova 22 years ago.

The Russian Federation has unleashed a disinformation war upon the Ukrainian people as well as against its own people using pseudo arguments of protecting human rights, with social-economic consequences unforeseeable for Russia.

In this context, we firmly condemn the decision of the Russian Federation Council of March 1st, 2014, which approves the use of Russian military force on the Ukrainian territory.

We also condemn the attempt of the Russian State Duma to modify the Russian Federation Constitution in order to allow the annexation of neighbor country territories on the grounds of eventual local referendums or express demands from the part of local authorities who organized those referendums.

Also, APE qualifies as unacceptable the encouragement and support of separatist movements by the Russian Federation in the post soviet countries.

In this context, APE calls the international actors – EU, USA, NATO, ONU, OSCE – to undertake urgent measures in order to stop the military intervention of the Russian Federation in Ukraine and stabilize the region using political and diplomatic leverages as well as adequate economic and financial sanctions.

Taking into account the recent events in the neighboring country, we call the EU to pay increased attention to the Eastern Partnership countries, willing to finalize the implementation of their commitments regarding democratic reforms, offering them genuine perspectives of European integration. In this sense, we call EU to finalize, according to the pre-established timeframe, the visa liberalization regime for the Moldovan citizens and to accelerate, as much as possible, the signing of the Association Agreement between Republic of Moldova and EU.

We call the EU and the USA to increase their economic assistance and to intensify the strategic dialogue with the Republic of Moldova, inclusively by including our country in the European security space.

We call the Moldovan authorities to take measure to increase the border security in order to maintain public order and avoid provocations from the part of forces interested in destabilizing the situation in the Republic of Moldova. Also, we request them a broader and decisive cooperation with their neighbors and partners when it comes to coordinating their actions meant to contribute to the stabilization of the situation in the region and to discourage the Russian Federation to repeat in future similar actions designed to encourage secessionism in the post soviet space.

We express our disappointment in regard with the Parliament failure to take a firm attitude on the Russian Federation’s behavior towards its neighbor Ukraine, in accordance with the national interests of the Republic of Moldova, leaving aside narrow party interests.

APE call all political parties in the Republic of Moldova, civil society organizations, in this extremely difficult period for the region to show unity and solidarity in order to ensure social cohesion and avoid any kind of tensions – political, social, ethnic. The political fight in this period has to yield before national interests and ensuring citizens’ security.

We reaffirm our support to Ukrainian people in their fight for freedom and country integrity, democratic values and the European future of the country.

APE appeals to all civil society to subscribe to this Statement and show solidarity in the fight of the Ukrainian people to preserve their sovereignty and territorial integrity.